The driving test

I recently read of a young woman's tortured journey from learner driver to freedom. As I remembered my own experience, my heart went out to her.

Michael Lloyd is a prolific contributor to 500 Words and other ABC Open projects. After reading Rach Loveday's story Speed Humps Michael was inspired to share his own experiences getting his licence and wrote this story.

I grew up on a farm and was driving vehicles by the time I was 12: utes, trucks, tractors and cars. So there would be no problem in getting my licence as soon as I turned 17.

Fifty years ago there were no learner's permits, no theory test, no P-plates and no fees. It was simple. Just front up to the police station, do the test and get your licence.

So in the first school holidays after I turned 17, I did just that. Dad drove me to the police station; minimal paperwork was filled out, birth certificate produced, and into the car.

As we drove out of the police station, the policeman asked: "What is the speed limit in towns in WA?"

I replied, smugly: "30 [miles per hour]." (Because that's what it was in Lake Grace.)

He responded: "Well, the correct answer is 'It varies, from 20 to 35', but that's OK, don't worry."

As I drove down the street, he said: "When I tell you to stop, do it as if it's an emergency."

He turned in his seat, looked behind and yelled: "Stop!"

I slammed on the brakes, shooting him off the front seat up against the dashboard (no seatbelts then).

"Good," he said. "Now turn round and go back to the station."

Once inside, he signed the bottom of the form, tore off the perforated strip and handed it to me.

I had my licence!

But that's not the end of the story.

The next year I was farming my own property and needed a licence to drive a truck, so a test was required.

My truck was pretty old and wouldn't pass even a cursory vehicle check, so Dad suggested we should take his new truck to Newdegate for the test, as the policeman came there each Friday, 'shopping day'. I drove into town, intending to find the policeman and do the test.

Guess who was the first person we saw? That's right, Mr Policeman.

I said: "I've come for my test." His response? "So I see."

I parked the truck and walked over to his car where he completed the required paperwork. He asked me for my licence and started endorsing a truck licence onto it.

I asked him about doing the test, and he replied: "No need. You can obviously drive; otherwise you wouldn't be here, so here you are." My truck licence!

The motorcycle licence was even easier. He considered it too far to bring the scooter into Lake Grace (52 kilometres), so again endorsed the licence.

Licencing requirements and categories have changed over the years, with the motorcycle and truck licences both upgraded with no further tests. My licence now covers any car, any motorcycle and any truck including a large trailer.

Simple, wasn't it, way back then? As I said, my heart goes out to all those taking their tests today.

3
Comments

Geraldine Janicke

My experience was similar to Michael Lloyd's. I got my license in Albany 42 years ago. From the police station on Stirling Terrace, I was told to go up Parade St where I did a dodgy hill start. Then the policeman asked me to do a 3-point turn. I didn't know what he meant and just heard turn so did a U turn. He commented that with a small car I probably didn't need to know how do do one. With that I got my car licence.
The following day I brought my scooter into town. The policeman stood out on the verge and asked me to drive to York St, turn right and come back behind the Womens Rest Centre. When I got back he was no where in sight and I didn't know what to do. I went back into the police station and he had the paperwork completed. And that now licences me to drive any size motorbike.
Traffic in Albany has changed a lot since those days and so has the way people drive.

Tony

I never did a test for my license (I am now 46). I lived in a very small town in the middle of NSW. I can still remember the local Police Officer telling me" "I've seen you driving around town, no need for a test today". I had my license. The local officer was also famous for going to the pub just before last beers. If he deemed you too drunk to drive, you had to put your car keys in a bucket. The bucket was then placed outside the front of Police Station about 9.00am to pick up your keys. Do worry, if you used a second set of keys to drive and he caught you, you were banned from the pub and sometime the young blokes lost there car for a few weeks. Cleaning the police car and making it look top notch might earn you a few weeks off your sentence. There was a very healthy respect for the local copper, who also doubled as the CES (Now called Centrelink) and just about any other government department.
Those days are gone or going from regional Australia, as it struggles to hold most towns together.

Rach Loveday

Hi Michael,
I really enjoyed this story, I am so happy to be free of driving tests and I'm glad that the journey of getting a licence for you was a lot easier. Although my parents didn't have to have a truck or a motorcycle licence, they have told me that getting their licence was a lot similar to the way you got yours. Although I wonder how much harder it will be for the next couple of generations to get their licences. The comparison between then and now is interesting. Thank you so much for reading my story, I really appreciate it.